Love Tag
by Blueberry Absinth
Summary: Theirs was something else, something entirely new. With the others, there were the soap operas and the gossip. They, while not lacking gossip, had their little game of chasing... For the contest with WhiteRosesHaveBlackThorns


**Me and _WhiteRosesHaveBlackThorns_ decided to have a little Namiku contest between the two of us. A friendly one of course, no pulled out hair :D. The voting will be done by reviewing and I suggest you read both entries (hers should be up soon too) before reviewing/voting. **

**I did quite the experimenting on this fic, so really hoping to be nice :D. Love the metaphors though.**

**Discl.: No ownage. Though Namiku owns ^.^ **

* * *

**~*Run, run away… I love you*~**

She is unique. Naminé. The only girl who refused to go out with him. It isn't something that should worry Riku beyond a reason, like now.

She isn't something special. Sure, she's pretty and quite clever, but with the blonde hair, the blue eyes and small frame she isn't something worth the trouble he wishes to go through. But the simple fact that she has been the first one to turn him down (later to be spit on by his admirers, from both gender) and that because of her he lost a bet with A LOT of money. The objective of the bet was to have him go out with someone of those few who didn't like doing dates.

Riku doesn't like it when he loses. No matter what he fails in, it stings deep inside and in his mind appears the desire to redo the challenge, even though most would forget it. Nothing is a game to him. Every lost imprints itself on the back of his heart, stopping him when resolve is essential. Most would not acknowledge the existence of a heart.

He isn't like most. And because of that, he approaches her one day. Showing a serious façade, he says that he just wants to be friends with her, that he has forgotten the wish to go out with her. Just pure, simple friendship. Nothing more, nothing less.

And Naminé agrees. Though a little skeptical.

And so the two of them become as if glued together. During lunch. During breaks. Every schooler who's listened to gossip (a.k.a. everyone), knows that usually Naminé never says a word. And now, the gossip queens are left with a finger in a mouth as the new duo, the new informal couple talk and talk and talk. And the strange thing is that the two continue being their normal selves while not in the presence of each other. So, having nothing else to do, the school starts making all kinds of gossips some so dense that even their creators wonder what kind of weed they have been smoking when thinking them up.

*.*

And while the normal teenagers struggle with such hard teenage problems (actually not hard at all), Riku feels like he's Robinson Crusoe teaching Friday everything he's ever known. Naminé practically knows nothing. The things that one learns by just listening to the chatter of the class, just… she doesn't know them. When he uses some of the 'street dialect', she looks like a small nothing-understanding angel from the older cartoons. Those with the question mark above their head. Then he has to explain the meaning.

But the boy, keeper of all the girls' hearts, loves challenges. He hates the easy, those who accepte too willingly, too fast. It just takes away from the pleasure of winning.

And Naminé is far from willing for a date and has some interesting habits to explore. Like, for example, she loves tag. But after being asked, she just shrugs and says that she doesn't know. Stupid as it sounds, he likes the hidden meaning in that simple detail – it's strange that she loves that game when the two of them are involved into a heart-tag of their own.

*.*

Because of each other's influence, they find themselves expanding the horizons. Riku is able to talk about things he's considered boring before and when he comes into Nami's classroom, he always sees her talking with someone on the radiator. Her companions are always one or two, one of his best friends Kairi or a blonde guy with blue eyes. It 's a rare occasion but sometimes the group's be so engrossed in their conversation that he would feel left out and would go to someone else he knows and talks until they are done so he can talk with his friend. Unknown to everyone, even himself, the seeds of jealousy between the blonde and the silver-head grow and grow until it's either one or the other. And from the three of them, Nami's suffering the most. From the three, Roxas is smuggest – the blonde girl has caught his eye before but back then she has been too quiet and antisocial for her to notice him and his advances and now he's taking full advantage from her sudden talkativeness. From the three, Riku is angriest – in their game, they are now three. And he hated outsiders.

Of course, the gossip queens are quite happy of the fact that a third persona has joined in their usual darts board for rumors – now a load of new ideas can be created without the need of weed. Even someone without the talent to make rumors (that was, after all, an art), can make the simple gossip that there's a threesome in the making, or maybe it's even established without any shame.

*.*

He hates them. Riku loathes every last one of those tattle-tales. Not only because he, like a usual teenager, lashes out to everyone who doesn't understand/agree with him, but because of the fact that Namine has just recently understood the joys of having friends, _she's just got used to having friends_. It's cruel for her to return to her normal self, to return to being the transparent splotch of white whom everyone ignores, to end their game. Even though nothing to him is games, he doesn't want this particular one to end soon. It's far too interesting and exciting.

*.*

For everyone eventually hits upon the game called love. Everyone gets obsessed with it eventually, everyone laughs as they play it, everyone falls at least once and it'll hurt until even after the scar fades and the memory disappears.

And at the moment Riku is nursing quite a nasty wound. Because he's been tripped.

*.*

He hates that guy. He doesn't have place in their game. Nami's his. His and only his. No one else has the right to share with her the tag. No one.

Where did he find such possessiveness?

*.*

The end comes like thunder from clear sky and even now, the only ones who know everything that happened were Naminé and Roxas. The gossip makers soon forget them, too concerned about discovering Axel's sexuality now, Riku couldn't care less. The only thing he cares about is the fact that she's with him now. And the fact that the memory doesn't sting the half-closed scars like salt. Instead happiness washes over him in slow tides. That day is the happiest and clearest one from his memory.

He remembers the way the sun rays fell upon him, the dampness and coldness of his skin (he was, after all, coming from football), the loud clink of his locker, her soft footsteps, the way her lips moved as they formed the apologizing words, the way her eyes sparkled.

He remembers the very words, each one a melody alone, but together forming something so heartfelt that it brought tears to one's eyes. He remembers easily letting go of everything just hearing those simple wordings.

He remembers smiling, coming up to her, patting her arm and then taking off in a random direction.

"You're chasing."

He smiles as they continue their little love game.


End file.
